How significant are the events of September 11th 2001 for Realist Essay

How significant are the events of September 11th 2001 for Realist assumptions Do they fundamentally undermine Realist assumptions - Essay Example Following the Cold War there was a return toward liberalism, and currently the pendulum appears to have swung back to a convoluted type of realism. Discussing these theories is much like watching a really good tennis match - there is a constant volley of back-and-forth with no end in sight. The main reason for this most recent shift back to realism is the terrorist attack against the United States on September 11, 2001. On September 11, 2001, the United States suffered an act of terrorism that transcended the attack on Pearl Harbor that led to U.S. involvement in WWII. Terrorists hijacked domestic airline flights and used the planes as the tools to destroy the World Trade Center in New York City and to damage the Pentagon. Over 3.000 people were killed, and the world was silent with shock. The ease with which the terrorists carried out this act and the unexpectedness of the event led the world’s nations to once again turn toward realism in regards to International Relations. The theories of liberalism and realism are at opposite sides of the spectrum. The late 1980s and the 1990s saw a trend toward liberalism. Proponents of liberalism stress the ideas of interdependency and cooperation among the nations (Haque, 2003). Realism, on the other hand, assumes that anarchy is the norm and each nation sees the others as a constant threat (Owen-Vandersluis, 2000). In order to survive this anarchy, nations must be self-sufficient and able to protect themselves against real or perceived threats. Nations commonly focus on military strength, making sure that they are powerful enough to prevent attacks from others. A perfect example is the relationship between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War in the 1970s and early 1980s. The end of the Cold War resulted in new attitudes on behalf of the American people. They focused on living with peace, rather than antagonism, and were confident that democracy had solved the world’s